"This agreement represents the latest step we are taking on HP's journey to reduce our carbon footprint across our entire value chain, while creating a stronger, more resilient company and a sustainable world," said Gabi Zedlmayer, HP vice president and chief progress officer, in a press release. "It's an important milestone in driving HP Living Progress as we work to create a better future for everyone through our actions and innovations."
The energy provided to HP is enough to completely power the company’s five Texas data centers, which amount to 1.5 million sq. ft., MarketWatch reported.
The agreement enabled SunEdison to begin construction on a new wind farm in Texas that will generate 300 MW and is expected to create more than 400 jobs during construction and 15 permanent jobs after construction.
"Wind-generated electricity represents a good business opportunity for Texas and for HP," said Paul Gaynor, executive vice president for North America Utility and Global Wind at SunEdison. "By powering their data centers with renewable energy, HP is taking an important step toward a clean energy future while lowering their operating costs. At the same time, HP's commitment allows us to build this project, which creates valuable local jobs and ensures Texan electricity customers get cost-effective energy."
The HP-SunEdison agreement follows similar announcements earlier in the year from other private companies, including Amazon Web Services, Google and Apple, each of which made similar commitments to renewable energy sources.
The public sector also is doing its part to reduce air pollution. On Aug 2., the White House announced an Environment Protection Agency program called America’s Clean Power Plan, which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 32 percent by 2030 through state-led policy changes in power consumption.
